CVE-2018-5877
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedIn the device programmer target-side code for firehose, a string may not be properly NULL terminated can lead to a incorrect buffer size in Snapdragon Automobile, Snapdragon Mobile and Snapdragon Wear in versions MDM9206, MDM9607, MDM9640, MDM9650, MDM9655, MSM8909W, MSM8996AU, SD 210/SD 212/SD 205, SD 600, SD 820, SD 820A, SD 835, SDA660, SDX20.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · moderate confidenceIn Qualcomm Snapdragon firmware, a string used in the device programmer firehose target-side code is not properly NULL terminated, causing functions that rely on NULL termination (like strlen, strcpy) to calculate incorrect buffer sizes. This can lead to buffer over-read or memory corruption.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE dataall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsCVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify the Qualcomm chipset model in the deviceCheck the device specifications, bootloader, or system information to determine the exact Snapdragon or MDM chipset model (e.g., Mdm9206, Msm8909w, Sd 210)Affected if The chipset matches one of the following: Mdm9206, Mdm9607, Mdm9640, Mdm9650, Mdm9655, Msm8909w, Msm8996au, or Sd 210
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Verify the device uses the firehose programmerInspect the device firmware or programming interface documentation to confirm the firehose target-side programming component is present and enabledAffected if The device implements Qualcomm's firehose programming protocol for firmware updates or initial device programming
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Check firmware version if accessibleRead the device programmer or firehose component version from /proc/version, AT commands, or diagnostic interfaces if availableAffected if The device firmware matches any of the affected chipset models (all versions are impacted per Qualcomm's disclosure)
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Review custom firmware builds for NULL termination handlingIf using custom or third-party firmware, inspect the firehose target-side code for proper NULL termination of string buffers used in strlen/strcpy operationsAffected if The firmware contains modified firehose code that does not ensure NULL termination of strings before size-calculating function calls
A device is affected if it contains any of the listed Qualcomm chipsets (Mdm9206, Mdm9607, Mdm9640, Mdm9650, Mdm9655, Msm8909w, Msm8996au, Sd 210) and utilizes the firehose programmer component, since all firmware versions for these models are vulnerable.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataApply vendor-provided firmware updates from Qualcomm and device manufacturers. For out-of-support devices, consider network segmentation and monitoring to reduce attack surface.
- Consultation8.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-5877 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2018-5877 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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